David Luiz should be PSG's new centrepiece

The postmortem has begun in Brazilian football following their humiliating 7-1 semi-final loss to eventual champions Germany, and while many will think that perhaps things could have been different if Neymar was fit, the reality is that the national team has been on a slow decline since the heady days of 2002, and that one man would not have made a difference against a powerful, well organised unit like the Germans.

Defensive frailties

Other than the absence of Neymar, the Brazilian defence, most notably David Luiz, has been the focus of the inquisition, and rightly so, after a series of pathetic blunders that are not uncommon in Sunday league football.

There is no doubting the quality of Luiz going forward, however there are plenty of questions about his decision making in defence, something that was at the heart of their humiliating exit from their home tournament.

In the absence of Thiago Silva in the semi-final due to suspension, Luiz was entrusted to marshall the defence which he did to spectacular effect when Brazil conceded five goals in the first half, in a performance that reduced a nation to tears.

Reckless

As seen time and time again in Chelsea shirt and at international level, Luiz loves to press forward in reckless fashion, resulting in a defensive system that gets completely pulled out of shape, as exploited by the Germans in ruthless fashion.

Luiz endured himself to the Brazilian public during last year's Confederations Cup, following a string of impressive performances alongside Thiago Silva in the centre of defence. In fact it was off the back of these performances, that defensive maestro and now coach of PSG Laurent Blanc, decided to bring the player to Paris for a world record fee for a defender of £50 million.

Many thought on last summer's Confederations Cup evidence, that the wire haired defender was starting to play like it said on the tin. How wrong we all were.

Before the Wold Cup, Blanc must have been relishing the prospect of pairing Luiz up with Silva for the French Champions, I would be intrigued to know what he might be thinking about that prospect now!

Mourinho called it right

It appears Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho called it right, as he so often does, by cashing in on a player that is too unpredictable in defence, and cashing in he did.

Luiz cost Chelsea £25 million from Benfica in 2011, a sound financial investment for the club over a three year period.

PSG decisions

The big concern for PSG comes on two fronts.

Firstly, will Luiz be mentally scarred following his performances during the World Cup, and how will he respond?

And secondly, does the World Cup winner, Laurent Blanc, take the player under his wing, and teach him the disciplined art of defending, or does he finally identify with the fact that he has just spent £50 million on one of the worst defenders in the top flight but one of the best attacking midfielders in Europe?

In the two biggest shop windows of world football, the World Cup and the Premier League, Luiz has constantly showcased bad decision making, produced a number of ill-timed and rash challengers and constantly shirked his defensive responsibilities.

However if you put that out of your mind and convince yourself that the Brazilian is in actual fact an attacking midfielder, with a specific role of making things happen in the opposition half, then I am sure you will agree, we are looking at a completely different entity altogether.

Luiz could be one of the best

Brilliant going forward

He is quite brilliant on the ball, his passing and vision are at times sublime, he can beat defenders with ease and is great in the air not to mention his ability to finish.

PSG have signed one of the most flair and creative players in the world, and one that has the ability to split defences with one pass and create something out of nothing.

Blanc and his coaching team need to change their mindset and approach towards their new player, and exploit the gifts that come with the eccentric Brazilian.

I believe if they can identify these incredible traits and take a calculated risk, they will end up with a player that is not the most expensive defender in the world, but one of the cheapest world class attacking midfielders.

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